DARLINGTON — The Darlington girls cross country team is making its second straight trip to the WIAA Division 3 state tournament Saturday, Nov. 2 at Wisconsin Rapids, and the Redbirds are itching for a chance at some hardware.

“If you look back on our program, we do have a tradition of not only having representation at the state meet, but performing well at the state level,” Darlington head coach Kent Miehe said. “That’s part of our program and a goal we always strive for. For our girls to continue that shows how committed they are to maintaining that level of success in our program. The goal is always to run at state, and our girls buy into that and put in the necessary work that it takes to get there.”

In 2023, Darlington tied Phillips for second with 138 points. Based on a tiebreaker, though, the Redbirds finished third — Phillips’ No. 6 runner, Caitlin Pesko (59th; 22:15.8), finished ahead of Darlington’s No. 6 runner, Shayla Gould (75th; 22:54.5).  

But four of the team’s seven runners return in 2024 — Adalee Berget, Brianna Vazquez, Piper DePauw and Clara Solverson. Thus, Darlington, ranked No. 6 per the WCCCA Coaches Poll, is one of the favorites to win the Division 3 title, including  No. 2 Assumption, No. 15 Bonduel and No. 1 Aquinas. Each of the three other teams finished in the top eight last season with multiple runners returning. With Lancaster moved up to Division 2 due to the WIAA competitive balance rule, a new team champion is guaranteed. 

Berget is also in the running for the individual champion. In 2023, she made the podium with a ninth-place finish (19:28.6). Her competition includes other top-10 runners from a season ago — Maggie Behler of Kohler (2nd), Lucy Dolan of Assumption (3rd), Mallory Kohn of Dodgeland (6th), Addison May of Crandon (7th) and Inez Schmidt of Cameron (8th). 

“Last year, we had to talk about what the atmosphere is like, important parts of the course to make moves on, and other little things to expect from such a huge meet. Now, these girls know what that’s like, and others have run at the state track meet, which also lends good experience for such a high-stakes race like the state cross country meet.”

In the boys race, Belleville’s Carson Biermeier qualified for his first state meet. At the Albany Sectional, Biermeir edged David Sarmeinto-Pax by five-tenths of a second to snag the last qualifying spot.

Although Biermeier personally has no state experience, Belleville head coach Tamara Houser is no stranger to the state meet and how to prepare runners for the heightened atmosphere. Carter Scholey, a 2024 graduate, has competed at the last three state cross country meets.